Makar Taken 4th Overall to Become Highest AJHL Pick at NHL Draft

Cale Makar (Brooks Bandits, AJHL) is all smiles after being
selected 4th overall by the Colorado Avalanche in the NHL Draft this
past Friday night. (Matthew Mackinder)

It wasn't until a breakout game in the World Jr. A Challenge this
past December that scouts had the chance to see what Calgary native and
Brooks Bandits defenceman Cale Makar was all about. He had a tournament
record-setting game for a defenceman by putting up five points in Canada
West's opening game.

Makar accumulated a long list of accolades and
awards during his 2015-16 AJHL championship season with the Brooks
Bandits including AJHL Rookie of the Year, AJHL All-Rookie Team, AJHL
All-Star Team, RBC Cup MVP, RBC Cup Top Scorer and RBC Cup Top
defenceman among many others. He added to those awards following this
past season with a repeat AJHL Championship season, winning the AJHL MVP
and top defenceman awards, RBC Cup MVP and RBC Cup Top Defenceman
honours (the first player to win these twice, let along back to back),
and was also named the RBC Canadian Junior Hockey League National Player
of the Year.

However, none of those accolades can compare to the day Makar had on
Friday night when he heard his name called by Colorado Avalanche legend
Joe Sakic at 4th overall in the NHL Draft.

"To be honest, I don't think it's quite sunk in yet. It seems cliché,
but I'm kind of speechless right now. You don't know what's going to
happen and when it finally does, you don't know what to feel," Makar
said minutes after being drafted in a rather large media scrum in the
NHL Draft interview room.

After a huge buzz hours before the draft that the Vegas Golden
Knights may be interested moving up to #1, Makar became a name being
thrown out there as a possible top three pick. However, it was the
Vancouver Canucks who were highly interested in moving up from their 5th
spot to take Makar but in the end it was the Avalanche who took Makar
at 4th overall.

"I met with the Avalanche at the combine, but they didn't give me any
indication they were taking me for sure. I was just coming here and
waiting to see what happened," Makar said. "I know that Joe Sakic played
there way back when, but other than that, I haven't looked up the
Avalanche too much."

Makar indicated he was still 100% committed to the NCAA University of
Massachusetts-Amherst even though Amherst just hired an entirely new
coaching staff.

"I'm still going to UMass next season and I couldn't be more excited
to do that. They brought in some new coaches but they're going to be
exceptional. I think we're bringing in 11 new freshmen and it's going to
be a whole new culture there and I'm just excited for the challenge and
to get started with something new," Makar said.

The Western Hockey League's Medicine Hat Tigers hold his CHL rights.

When asked if he is ready to step into the Avalanche lineup right
away, he pointed at the parts of his game that he needs to work on in
order to be comfortable in an NHL lineup.

"I'm going to (hopefully) get a little bigger and a little bit of
time in the NCAA is going to hopefully shape me into an NHL player. I
think that's why the NCAA is going to be a great path for me and
especially UMASS," Makar said, "The timetable for me is going to depend
on how I develop. My intention is to play in the NHL when I'm ready,
whenever I feel I'm ready, and whenever my organization feels I'm
ready."

Makar is now the highest drafted player in AJHL history, surpassing
Avalanche forward Joe Colborne, who was selected 16th overall in 2008 by
the Boston Bruins before joining Denver University. He is the second
highest CJHL drafted player right after BCHL alum Kyle Turris who was
drafted 3rd overall to the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2007 NHL Draft.

Makar had been gaining momentum the past few weeks which included an ESPN.com
draft ranking that had him as the #1 draft prospect. When he was asked
about his ranking and he momentum he was gaining, he answered humbly.

"I'm not a guy that goes out and looks at any of that stuff,
especially during the season. I was coming in here looking at it as a
once-in-a-lifetime experience and I never knew what as going to happen,
it was just fun to sit in the stands," Makar said.

With steady development and the motivation to improve on his overall
game and conditioning, Makar may end up being the best player drafted in
the first round.

"The way I see the draft is that's it's not going to matter where you
get picked. People aren't going to look at that but rather what you did
after the draft. Nobody is going to care what you did before, so it's
all about how you're going to carry yourself afterward and where you're
going to go, and I've had a great couple of days in Chicago," Makar
said.

Scouting Report on Makar:Has really
turned heads and dropped jaws with his offensive capability. Likes to
skate the puck deep into the offensive zone and create offense.
Possesses a real heavy, hard wrist shot and likes to shoot often from
between the circles. Phenomenal skater who can get up and down ice
closing sizeable gaps to get back into position after pinching in.
Follows up his passes ensuring he hits outlet pass right on the tape.
Great ice coverage and constantly moving around the ice looking to make a
play. Has good offensive instincts but knows his defensive
responsibilities come first.

Comparable to Ottawa defenceman Erik
Karlsson and projects as a first pairing defenceman with an offensive
mindset who can contribute on both the power play and penalty kill.

ISS final ranking on Makar was #9 and he was drafted #4 to Colorado Avalanche.

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